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Cow's Medicine Chest 



By VALANCEY E. FULLER 



1 he Cow's Medicine Chest 



FOR 

Home Use 



By VALANCEY E. FULLER 






Copyrighted by the author, 1914. 



Published by the author, 
19 Burnet Street, Maplewood, N. J 



NOV-/ 1914 
0)GI.A388319 



FOREWORD. 

Prevention is always better than cure. 

If cows are fed a balanced and well-considered ration — by 
this we mean one in which the greater proportion is made up 
of light and cooling feeds — and are fed grain in proportion 
to the quantity of milk given, but little sickness or udder 
trouble will be encountered, under normal conditions. 

If calves are healthy at birth, are not overfed, are housed 
in sanitary quarters with plenty of light and ventilation, are 
supplied with enough clean bedding and are kept steadily 
growing, there will be little use for this pamphlet, so far as 
they are concerned. 

Many, however, whether breeders or dairymen, have sick 
cows and calves; and if they are attended to at once serious 
sickness may be averted. We are constantly receiving re- 
quests for treatment for sick cattle, and believe that this 
pamphlet will be helpful to all owners of dairy cattle. These 
remedies are not intended to take the place of veterinary 
treatment, which we recommend wherever possible. They 
are merely home treatments for cases where it seems unnec- 
essary to call in the veterinary surgeon. 



ABORTION 

There are three kinds of abortion: accidental, or that trace- 
able to a cause, such as slipping, knocking against the barn 
door, riding, climbing steep hills or drinking icy water in 
winter; sympathetic, due to other cows calving in the same 
barn, with others well on toward calving, and by other cows 
aborting in the barn, the calf being left on the floor for a 
length of time; contagious abortion, due to a germ, carried 
either by the bull, or from other aborting cows, which will 
lodge on the hind quarters, enter the vulva, then the womb, 
multiply, eat the membranes of the calf bag and cause the 
cow to abort. 

In cases of threatened abortion from accident, or sympa- 
thetic abortion, isolate the cow whose vulva is swollen or 
who shows, by a swollen udder, a tendency to abort; give an 
ounce of laudanum to quiet her and remove the bearing down 
pains, and then administer by the mouth five tablespoonfuls 
of fluid extract of black haw in twenty-four hours at intervals 
of about two to three hours. Repeat every twenty-four hours 
for five days, when the cow will either have slipped her calf, 
or will be checked. This extract of black haw is a uterine 
tonic and a great astringent, and draws up the vaginal 
muscles. 

The above treatment can be beneficially given a cow who 
threatens to lose her calf by contagious abortion. 

When contagious abortion is present, indicated by the 
afterbirth looking as if drained of blood, with a tallowy 
appearance, remove cow at once to isolated quarters; remove 
all bedding and burn it; bury the calf deeply and spread lime 
over it; wash sides, floor, manger and partitions of stall and 
those on both sides of it with a solution of creolin or other 
standard disinfectant; wash hind quarters, tail and vulva of 
cow on both sides of the aborting cow once a day, for a week 
or ten days with the same disinfectant, which is designed to 
destroy the germs of abortion which may have found lodg- 
ment on them. 

Disinfect the aborting cow twice daily with the creolin or 
other wash, which is best done by using a piece of hose and 
a funnel to flush her out. If the afterbirth does not come 
away naturally, use treatment given under heading, "Reten- 
tion of Afterbirth." 

Continue disinfection until every sign of discharge is dried 
up. This is of the last importance, because a great many 
cows fail to breed after abortion, because they throw out an 
acid discharge which destroys the fertility of the male semen. 

If there is contagious abortion in a herd, disinfect the 
sheath of the bull before every service and inject into the 



cow the same disinfectant before service, so as to have a 
clean seed bed. 

If a cow aborts, say, at the seventh month, she should not 
be bred until five months after; if in the sixth month, she 
should not be bred for six months: the object being to make 
her come in with next calf at the same time she would have 
come in naturally. 

A cow that has once aborted will usually abort the next 
time a month earlier. 

When a cow has aborted, begin the third month after serv- 
ice to give daily, in each feed, a teaspoonful of fluid extract 
of black haw, or two teaspoons once a day. Continue this up 
to within fifteen days of calving. This is to strengthen and 
build up the generative organs. 

The above treatment we have found to be the best remedy 
and check for abortion, and always recommend it. There are 
many who like the carbolic acid treatment, and that method 
is hereby given. 

Buy crystals of carbolic acid, remove cork from bottle, 
place bottle in hot water, and when crystals are melted mix 
two-thirds of acid and one-third water. In cold weather, to 
prevent freezing, add five ounces of glycerine to one pound 
of the melted acid and water. 

As a wash, use fifty drops of glycerine-carbolic to one quart 
of water. This may be used as a disinfectant instead of 
creolin if desired. 

To cows that have aborted, give, by the mouth, twenty-five 
drops of glycerine-carbolic in a half-pint of water, twice a 
day for the month immediately following service; then the 
third, fifth and seventh months. 

Wash hind quarters and vulva occasionally with the gly- 
cerine-carbolic wash. 



COWPOX 



For cowpox, use i oz. glycerine-carbolic acid and lo oz. 
raw linseed oil, mixed. Bathe teat with hot water and apply 
mixture after milking. This mixture can also be used for 
sore teats. 



GARGET 

One of the most common ailments in the cow barn is gar- 
get in its various forms. It has many different causes, such 
as lying on a cold floor or damp ground, being in a draught 
when fresh, overfeeding with heating feeds, injury to the ud- 
der, crowding v/ith feed too fast after calving, silage or other 
feed that is mouldy. The chief cause of all is failure to strip 
thoroughly. Then there is the contagious form, caused by 
infection carried by milkers from one cow to another. 

If in the building of the cow barn, tarred paper were laid 
under the concrete to cut off cold and dampness, there would 
be little garget caused by cold damp floors. 

Cows are especially susceptible to this trouble if a draught 
strikes the udder when fresh, as it is extremely tender. Care 
should be exercised to see that windows behind fresh cows 
or doors near them are closed in the winter time or in the 
early spring when there are cold winds. 

If two-thirds of the ration is composed of bulky and light 
feeds, instead of heavy grains, there will be little trouble with 
the udders. If more than lYz to 3 lbs. of cottonseed meal or 
more than 4 lbs. of gluten feed is fed to a thousand-pound 
cow, especially soon after calving, udder trouble may be 
looked for. In addition to these two feeds, it is our experi- 
ence that liberal feeding of brewers' dried grains or malt 
sprouts tends to make an inflamed udder. 

Bloody milk is often caused by cows having their udders 
stepped on or gored or otherwise injured. 

Cows who, when dry, have been fed lightly with protein 
feeds, thus becoming thin, need a concentrated ration to bring 
on a heavy flow in their early lactation. Not being in con- 
dition to take care of the latter, their digestive organs get out 
of order, resulting in a fevered condition, and garget. If, on 
the contrary, they have plenty of lean flesh to draw on for 
protein they need not be fed such concentrated feeds and the 
digestive and milk making processes work naturally and keep 
normal. 

When a cow has a caked or inflamed udder, give immedi- 
ately the drench before referred to, and in case of a light at- 
tack, take off all heating feeds such as cottonseed meal, 
gluten, brewers' dried grains, or malt sprouts. Confine the 
feeding to hay, silage or green feeds, bran, oats and a small 
quantity of linseed oil meal. In case the attack is a severe 
one, take off all feeds but hay and silage and green feeds for 
from 24 to 48 hours, giving all the water the cow will drink. 
Bathe the udder three times a day with water as hot as the 
hand will bear, and immediately after apply, hot, the follow- 
ing lotion, using it three times a day: i pt. melted lard or 
mutton tallow, to which add three tablespoons spirits tur- 
pentine. Rub this into the udder well, and continue treat- 



ment until all inflammation is gone. If a cow is dry, cam- 
phorated oil may be substituted for the lard and turps; but 
if she is in milk it should not be used as it will dry up the 
milk. 

If a cow is giving gargetty, thick or stringy or bloody milk, 
give a drench as above indicated and also take off the feed as 
directed, and in addition give, three times a day, by way of 
the mouth, the following: 15 grains Merks' chemically pure 
sulphate potassium dissolved in a pint of hot water, to which 
add 15 drops of fluid extract pokeroot. This quantity makes 
one dose. Repeat until the cow's milk begins to be natural. 

Another liniment for caked udder is 2 oz. turpentine, 2 oz. 
linseed oil, lYz oz. liquid ammonia, i qt. vinegar, applied three 
times a day. 

Another medicine to be given internally for gargety, stringy 
or bloody milk is 2 oz. copperas, 2 oz. gentian, 4 oz. saltpetre, 
4 oz. cream of tartar, 14 oz. nux vomica. Give a tablespoon- 
ful three times a day to a thousand-pound cow. 

Of these remedies we prefer the first lotion and sulphate of 
potassium, which we originated and have used for over thirty 
years with unvarying success. 

When a cow has a caked udder and has apparently lost a 
quarter, start three weeks before she calves and bathe the 
udder with hot water three times a day, and rub it thorough- 
ly, immediately afterward applying the lard and turps. If it 
is rubbed with the hands several times a day besides, it will 
help still more. Give the poke root and potassium as before 
directed, but stop it seven days before she calves. The rub- 
bing will stimulate the glands by setting up a good circula- 
tion, while the internal dose will aid in breaking up the caked 
quarter. ♦-»-• 

TEAT TROUBLES 

Chapped Teats — In very bad cases, wash the teat first with 
a solution of one dram of sugar of lead in one pint of water, 
and then apply benzoated oxide of zinc ointment. In less 
severe cases use carbolated vaseline. If the healing is slow, 
put a small quantity of powdered alum on the teat after using 
the vaseline. 

Scabby Teats — Smear with carbolated vaseline. 

Warts on Teats — Smear thickly after each milking with 
pure olive oil; or they may be taken off with very sharp scis- 
sors and the wound touched with a caustic pencil; or a piece 
of silk may be tied tightly around the wart and left, when the 
wart will drop off. 

When the caseine forms a small lump in the teat like a mar- 
ble, and moves up and down, or the teat is blocked by a warty 
growth inside, or a closure of the milk duct, have a competent 
veterinary surgean called. I do not believe in using a milk- 
ing tube where it can possibly be avoided. If there is any 
trouble in the teat, forcing the tube up will surely force the 
bacteria into the bag. 

8 



MILK FEVER 

At one time milk fever usually proved fatal. It was seldom 
that cows recovered, especially when they were stricken 
down very shortly after calving. Fortunately, the air treat- 
ment by which air is pumped into the udder is usually so suc- 
cessful that the percentage of deaths is small. Milk fever can 
generally be detected in the earlier stages, following calving, 
by a drooping of the ear, dry nose, hot horn, drooping of the 
head and a glassy eye. Later, when the cow moves, there is 
a tendency to sway. This is a sign that she is very close to 
going down with the fever. 

Every calving cow should be given the drench referred to 
on page 15 immediately before or after calving, not merely 
to act upon the bowels, but to cool the blood. If she shows 
any sign of the fever, great care must be taken to see that she 
swallows the drench, ascertained by holding the hand on her 
throat. If she does not swallow, lower her head and let the 
drench run out. 

Cows often become unconscious when stricken with this 
disease, the eyes become glazed and they cannot feel even a 
puncture of the skin. The air treatment should be at once 
resorted to. The head of the cow should be so tied that she 
cannot swing it, as this endangers the limbs of those working 
about her. She should be propped up to rest on her breast- 
bone, her fore legs under her and the hind legs stretched out 
to the left. It is necessary, to keep her in this position, to 
pack straw around her. Do not let her lie on her side because 
she may develop bloating and belching of gas which may 
pass into the windpipe and cause bronchial pneumonia. See 
that the straw on which she lays is absolutely clean. It is 
best to have some table oilcloth or clean muslin to place be- 
tween the udder and the straw. All parts of the air pump 
must be thoroughly disinfected by boiling for 30 minutes and 
the hand must never come in contact with the teat tube after 
it has been sterilized or until it is inserted into the teat. It 
should be handled with a clean cloth. The teats and udder 
should be thoroughly washed with warm soapsuds, then with 
cold water, and the teats bathed with a 5% solution of creolin. 
After teats and udder have been dried with a clean cloth, the 
teat tube is inserted into one teat and that quarter filled with 
air from the rubber pump, as full as it will hold. The tube 
is then withdrawn and a broad tape tied around the end of 
the teat to prevent the air from escaping. The teat tube 
should then be dipped in the creolin solution, again inserted 
and the above process repeated, with the remaining three 
teats. If the cow does not respond to this treatment in two 
hours, it may be again repeated. The precautions to keep 
teats and tube clean are to prevent the introduction of bac- 
teria into the udder, which might cause blood poisoning. 



CALF SCOURS 

The causes that seem to be at the bottom of this scourge 
are overfeeding, giving milk that is not warm enough, using 
foul feed buckets or having unclean surroundings. If kept 
in a clean, dry, well-ventilated stall, fed from clean buckets, 
and supplied with the right amount of milk that is 98 degrees 
by a dairy thermometer — not the finger of the feeder — calves 
should be free from ordinary scours. 

If the disease does develop, add about four drops of for- 
malin to each quart of milk. If it continues, use the following 
prescription: i oz. essence peppermint, i oz. Jamaica ginger, 
I oz. fluid extract catechu, i oz. whiskey, 1 oz. powdered 
French chalk, i oz. paregoric, i oz. extract gentian, and 7 oz. 
water. Give one teaspoonful three times a day to a calf 
three v/eeks old, increasing the size of dose according to the 
age and size of calf. I have never known this to fail. 

Then there is also contagious scours, which appears almost 
invariably within one or two days after birth. It may be 
caused by infection in the food, but is generally believed to 
be due to some condition of the dam's blood before the calf's 
birth. 

The cow should be supplied with plenty of clean, dry straw, 
as soon as labor starts, and it should be changed often 
enough to insure a clean, dry surface for the calf to drop on. 
Cut the navel cord long, tie it in a knot as near the end as 
possible, and disinfect the end with a solution of carbolic 
acid, 1/2 oz. to a quart of water; continue this treatment 3 or 
4 times a day until wound is dried up. The calf must be kept 
clean and dry. 



10 



STERILITY 

In the male the usual causes are a too fat condition causing 
fatty degeneration of the testicles and their ducts; serving 
too many cows v/hen not fully matured, but, above all, lack 
of exercise. Where the bull is too fat, reduce his feed and if 
any bran is fed add to it a tablespoonful of Epsom salts daily 
until he becomes thinner. The bull serves best in a thin 
condition and is surest. Bulls in show condition are often 
sterile. 

Too frequent use causes a loss of vitality and the bull's 
progeny are not as vigorous as they should be and often 
inherit his weakness of the generative organs, which shows 
later with both males and females by their becoming them- 
selves sterile. 

If the bull is started young enough there is no better way 
to give him exercise than the treadmill, and he can then be 
utilized for many purposes on the farm. Another way to 
exercise the bull is to have a wire stretched from the end of 
his exercise paddock right into his stall above the manger 
and fastened to the side of the wall. Have a chain from his 
nose ring to a pulley running on the wire, and long enough to 
give him freedom in serving cows. Cows can be turned in to 
him at any time, he is perfectly free and yet is securely kept 
from doing any harm. 

Some bulls are very short-legged or have very deep 
paunches, and in such cases it is desirable to keep them from 
water before serving a cow. 

If a bull becomes slow in service, feed from six to a dozen 
raw eggs a day; whole oats also are often beneficial. 

Bulls that are given plenty of exercise will often do good 
service until they are sixteen or seventeen years old. 

The main causes for non-breeding in the females are dis- 
eases of internal organs, other than the generative organs; 
underfeeding in winter, which causes loss of vitality; feeding 
a ration with too many heating and fattening grains, causing 
fatty degeneration of ovaries and their ducts; rigid closure of 
the mouth of the womb; breeding heifers too early before 
their organs are fully matured; overheating of the blood by 
too heavy feeding, which makes them "buUers"; breeding too 
soon after calving, before all discharges are dried up; leucor- 
rhea; discharge of acidity after abortion, whereby the fertility 
of the semen is destroyed; incestuous inbreeding; disease of 
the ovaries and of the generative organs; an acid bacteria in 
the vagina, where there has been no abortion. 

The most common causes are the rigid closure of the 
mouth of the womb, acid bacteria in vagina and diseased 
ovaries. 

Where it is the closure of the womb, treatment should be 

11 



given when the cow is in season. The right arm should be 
bared to the shoulder, the hand and arm thoroughly sterilized 
by washing with soapy, carbolized water, the arm smeared 
with sweet oil or vaseline, and the hand inserted into the 
vagina with the fingers held closely together, the second fin- 
ger above the others. When the os or channel between the 
vagina and the womb is reached, the second finger should be 
gradually worked into it, a slight pressure being made. The 
OS will generally open gradually. If the finger can be in- 
serted the full length, the passage is clear. A pressed, cone- 
shaped sponge should then be inserted in the opening of the 
OS and left for a few hours, when the heat and moisture will 
expand it. It should be removed and the cow immediately 
be served. Sometimes, a skin growth will be found just 
where the os enters the womb, and in that case a surgeon 
must be called to cut it. The following treatment is often 
helpful: Dissolve 2 oz. borax and 2 oz. carbonated soda in 
3 qts. warm water and inject into the vagina. Wait one hour 
and then have the cow served. 

Where the acid bacteria are present in the vagina, the 
yeast treatment is very effective. It is as follows: Pour 
Yz pt. warm water on a compressed yeast cake, let stand for 
24 hours, and add enough tepid water to make a quart and let 
stand another 24 hours, and inject into the vagina about an 
hour before service. Where the neck of the womb has been 
closed and has been opened by the hand it is good to inject 
this yeast solution an hour before service. 

The cysts or tumors on the ovaries retard the full develop- 
ment of the ovum and prevent conception. They usually 
occur in cows that have been heavily fed, as for tests, for a 
length of time, especially where the ration has had many 
heating grains in it. The only thing to do in a case of this 
kind is to call a veterinary to remove the tumor, when the 
cow will almost always breed again. We have known of 
many such cases. 

When a cow is a "buller" confine her grain feed to the cool- 
ing feeds — wheat bran, ground oats, a little linseed oil meal 
and add a tablespoonful (level) of Epsom salts every 24 
hours. 



HEAT 

If a cow fails to come into heat regularly, feed daily 2 qts. 
ground oats and give once a day i tablespoonful of the fol- 
lowing mixture: 2 lbs. salt, 2 oz. powdered nux vomica. 

If a cow is constantly coming into heat or is what is com- 
monly called a "buller," give her the drench before specified, 
and, in addition, give as much Epsom salts, in her daily feed, 
as she will stand without scouring badly. The benefit of the 
salts lies mainly in its cooling effect on the blood. 

12 



RETENTION OF AFTERBIRTH 

This is due often to a cow aborting, to general debility or 
to the closing of the neck of the womb too rapidly after calv- 
ing, caused by drinking cold water, or to eating cold feed, 
especially frozen roots. It is sometimes caused by letting 
the calf suck, or drawing the milk too soon. 

If caused by cold water or feed, hot drinks and hot mashes 
of bran and oats will remedy the trouble. In any condition, 
a bottle or two of flaxseed tea thoroughly boiled, should be 
given at frequent intervals. In a very bad case, one ounce of 
ergot of rye or one dram of the extract of same may be used. 

We do not favor removal of the afterbirth by hand. There 
are many cases in which it is almost impossible to entirely 
remove it, and, in consequence, blood poisoning or fever set 
in, causing serious sickness. 

We prefer to attach a pound or two-pound weight to the 
hanging portions and allow it to come away of its own 
accord, feeding the cow liberally in the meantime and disin- 
fecting the vaginal passages night and morning. This should 
continue until all discharge ceases. 



LEUCORRHEA 



This trouble is usually caused by an injury at the time of 
calving, or from inflammation caused by the putrefaction of 
some of the retained afterbirth. It is usually indicated by a 
large, sticky, white mass drooped by the cow during the night 
while she is lying down, and is to be found in the manure 
gutter in the morning. Sometimes there will be a slight but 
continuous discharge from the vulva of the cow. This soils 
the tail and can be distinguished in that way. The cow will 
not conceive while in this condition. She should be injected 
with a solution made with 3 tablespoonfuls of a powdered 
borax, 3 tablespoonfuls of sulphate of zinc and 60 drops of a 
5% solution of carbolic acid in three quarts of hot water. If 
the cow becomes thin, through the discharge, give her 3 
drams of sulphate of iron and Vz oz. of ground ginger daily 
in her grain feed. 



PROTRUSION OF THE VAGINA 

Protrusion of the vagina is caused by the cow lying in a 
stall that is lower near the gutter than in the front, and only 
during pregnancy. The cow should be placed in a stall or on 
a platform where the hind feet stand on a higher level than 
the fore feet. If this does not prove effective, a truss should 
be used. 

13 



IMPACTION OR INDIGESTION 

Cows are gluttons: they will continue to eat until they are 
really sick. Impaction is due to constant overloading of the 
stomach, or the use of feeds which have a tendency to pack 
when fed to excess. If the trouble is impaction of the mani- 
fold, it may be discovered by pressing the fist against the 
flank, when there will be felt a large doughy mass in the cow, 
about the size of a man's fist. All feed should be stopped, a 
drench given, and the following medicine: ^ oz. Capsicum, 
^ oz. nux vomica, 1154 oz. gentian. Give three teaspoonfuls 
three times a day. 

Of course, one of the first symptoms of indigestion or im- 
paction will be the loss of the cud. With the latter the cow 
usually has some fever and the droppings become dry and 
little are voided. 

In severe cases of impaction the cow goes down and be- 
comes unconscious. The veterinary should at once be called 
in if this happens. We have never been able to save a cow 
in this last condition unless the rumen was opened, and all 
the food taken out, the wound being sewn up. There is such 
a mass of food in the stomach that, unless it is removed, 
there is no chance for the medicine to act. The cow should 
be sustained by milk administered constantly while she is 
getting no feed. She will rarely eat while in this condition, 
but will generally drink. Another way to sustain vitality is 
by giving hay tea, made as follows: Use a wooden bucket, 
and fill it one-third full of clover heads or alfalfa leaves, and 
two-thirds boiling water. Cover closely and let steep. Pour 
off and give some in the drinking water. 

In a simple case of indigestion give the drench, take off all 
feed for from 24 to 48 hours, and if at the end of 24 hours the 
cow is voiding her manure freely, give the same medicine in 
like quantities as for impaction of the manifold. 



OFF FEED 



This disturbance is Nature's protest against overfeeding. 
Give drench set out on page 15 immediately. Take off all 
grain feed for two days, feed nothing but hay and silage or 
green feed and plenty of warm water, and the cow will 
usually get back her appetite in two days. If the cow is hide- 
bound, in addition, give the condition powders set on page 15. 



11 



DEPRAVED APPETITE 

Cows and calves are both subject to an apparent desire to 
eat foreign substances, such as shavings, lime, earth, etc. 
This is caused by impaired digestion, and sometimes to the 
fact that there is not enough ash in their feed, and nature 
craves it. Good results are often secured by feeding three 
teaspoonfuls of powdered charcoal in the feed, three times a 
day. In addition, give the following: Mix i lb. finely ground 
bone, 4 oz. powdered gentian, 4 oz. carbonate lime, 4 oz. pow- 
dered fenugreek, 4 oz. powdered caseine. The dose is a 
tablespoonful three times a day. 



DRENCHES 



A drench is the most useful remedial agent in the cow 
barn. If a cow is fevered, off her feed, has inflammation of 
the udder or any other form of garget, the first thing is to 
administer a drench; and she should have one before or im- 
mediately after calving. Many seem to think that the great 
benefit of a drench is in its purgative effect. This is an error. 
Epsom salts are not only purgative, but thin the blood, there- 
by lessening fever. There are many conditions of the cow 
that are benefited by cooling the blood. The following is our 
drench which we have used successfully for over thirty years: 
I lb. to 1% lbs. Epsom salts, according to size of cow; 2 
heaping tablespoonfuls Jamaica ginger, i qt. molasses, add to 
I qt. boiling water. Give as a drench in a strong bottle. 
Care must be taken, when giving the drench, to see that the 
liquid is not poured too fast, overflowing the mouth and get- 
ting into the lungs. It is well to have an attendant hold the 
horns so that the man giving the drench can hold his hand 
under the throat to see that the liquid is swallowed. If the 
cow fails to swallow, turn the head down and let the drench 
run out of the mouth. 



CONDITION POWDERS 

There are times when, from the staring coat of a cow, or a 
tight hide, we know it would be benefited by condition pow- 
ders, which are in no sense a feed, but a medicine. The fol- 
lowing is as effective as any that can be purchased, and will 
not cost more than $75 to $100 a ton: 20 lbs. linseed oil meal, 
O. P., I lb. powdered charcoal, i lb. Epsom salts, i lb. com- 
mon salt, 12 oz. saltpetre, 12 oz. powdered gentian and 9 oz. 
fenugreek. Give i tablespoonful twice a day in the feed. 
It is always better to precede the giving of this by a drench, 
directions for which will be found under the chapter on 
drenches. 

15 



INSECTS 

Flies are pests that in the summer greatly diminish the 
milk flow. We prefer letting cows out at night, keeping them 
in a darkened stable in the daytime, and having spools of fly- 
paper hung from the ceiling. A good repellant is the follow- 
ing: Fish oil, 100 parts; oil of tar, 50 parts; crude carbolic, 
one part. This should be applied by a pump every second 
day. 

The horn fly gathers on the horn in great numbers and 
causes the animal much suffering. The same spray will help, 
but must be used oftener as it dries out on the horn. 

Cows in poor condition are those usually affected by lice. 
These insects cannot live in grease. They are generally found 
at the root of the tail, along the ridge of the back and at the 
base of the horns. If these parts are thoroughly smeared 
with carbolated vaseline, it will usually kill lice. In summer 
a sheep dip can be used and sponged onto the cows. In win- 
ter they are liable to take cold from this and the following 
is very effective then: Steep 4 oz. larkspur seed in one gallon 
of boiling water and allow to stand 12 hours. Strain and ap- 
ply to affected parts by a sponge as often as necessary. Or 
put on the larkspur seed, i pt. gin, and let stand for 48 hours. 
Then pour off into enough water to make a gallon. 

When lousy cows are put into winter quarters, the lice 
spread through the stable. It is, therefore, needful to spray 
It with some standard germacide. 

Warbles or bots or grubs are all caused by the warble fly, 
about 14 inch long, hairy and somewhat like a black bee. 
When the warbles show large, press out, using a knife, if 
necessary, to enlarge the opening. Or enlarge the opening 
through which the warbles breathe, and use a small machin- 
ist's oil can to deposit a few drops of kerosene which will 
kill the pest. 

Ringworm is denoted by circular, bare, inflamed patches of 
hide. It may be communicated from calf to calf or from 
cow to cow. Wash the crust with clean warm water and cas- 
tile or ivory soap, and then apply any of the following: 
Dioxogen, tincture of iodine, sulphur and lard (as much sul- 
phur as the lard will take up) or nitrate of mercury ointment, 
once a day. Spray the stable with a disinfectant, and where 
possible whitewash it to destroy all spores. 



16 



BLOATING OR HOVEN 

This is often brought on by cows staying too long on first 
flush of pasture, or eating too much potato or cabbage or 
wheat middlings. In the latter there is considerable flour. 
Grass with the dew on it, frozen roots, or grass with hoar 
frost on it, may cause this trouble. 

When cows show bloating it is best to keep them in mo- 
tion, and give immediately two ounces of aqua ammonia in a 
pint of hot water, repeatng in half an hour, and again a third 
time in a half hour, if need be. With the first dose give two 
tablespoonfuls spirits turpentine, in oil or melted lard to pre- 
vent the turpentine burning. The turps nullifies the gas. In 
extreme cases, and only when absolutely necessary, a trocar 
may be used. It should be inserted in the left side of the 
cow, at a point "equally distant from the last rib, the hip bone 
and the transverse processes of the lumbar vertebrae." An 
incision should be made with a knife, one-quarter of an 
inch long, at this point. The trocar should be left until every 
vestige of gas has escaped. In escaping, it sometimes drives 
some of the fine feed into the opening of the trocar and 
chokes it up. It is necessary to remove it, clean, and insert 
again. Sometimes it is advisable to tie the trocar in and 
leave it for several hours. If no trocar is at hand, a goose 
quill can be used, with a very small piece of the rounded end 
clipped off, inserted and held by the hand. 



SWOLLEN KNEE. 



This trouble is usually caused by a bruise, very often in 
rigid stanchions or through rising on the knee on a concrete 
floor. Unless the swelling is hard like bone, first bathe, then 
open at the base with a knife, and with a silver spoon scoop 
out all matter and inject the wound with tincture of iodine. 
Where the swelling is attached to the bone, and is hard, 
paint with iodine, repeating as often as necessary. 



RHEUMATISM 



It is not often that rheumatism occurs in cows, and when 
it does is usually due to exposure to dampness and cold. The 
animal should be well sheltered in a dry, clean, stall, with 
plenty of light, and protected from draughts.. She should 
have laxative and easily digested food and be given pure 
water. Where the trouble becomes acute or chronic, give 
every two hours for ten hours, ^/^ oz. sodium salicylate; after 
that once a day only, until the cow is better, when it should 
be discontinued. 

17 



BRONCHITIS 

Any animal suffering from bronchitis should be placed in 
a light, well-ventilated stall free from draughts, and the 
bowels kept open by injections, not by purgatives. In the 
first stages give three times a day the following: 2 drams 
extract belladonna, 4 fluid ozs. acetate of ammonia in one- 
half pint water. Give in a pint of linseed tea, every four 
hours, lYz oz. nitrous ether, 2 oz. aromatic spirits ammonia 
and 2 drams powdered camphor. 



LEAD POISONING 



Cattle will often lick freshly painted surfaces and will, if 
they can get at it, eat paint by the pailful. The symptoms 
of lead poisoning are dullness, colic, lying down with head 
turned back toward flank, loss of use of the limbs, champing 
of jaws, violent bellowing, moving in a circle, etc. 

Epsom salts should be given at once, and if there is any 
evidence of brain trouble bromide of potassium should be 
given in half-ounce doses every four hours, and cold water 
should be applied to the head. When the drench is given, a 
half ounce dose of dilute sulphuric acid should be added. 
After cows begin to recover from the acute symptoms, 2 
drams of iodide of potassium should be given three times a 
day for a week. The cow should be fed milk. 



CLOTS ON VAGINA 



Very often blood clots will appear on the walls of the 
vagina in the early periods of lactation. They are easily dis- 
tinguished from those due to abortion, being deeper in color 
and showing more inflammation. The following is quite ef- 
fective. Sponge twice a day with a lotion made of i dram sul- 
phate of zinc, I dram carbolic acid and i quart of water. 



18 



LUMP JAW 

Lump jaw is caused by a fungus growth found on barley, 
oats and other grains. It cannot be directly conveyed by one 
animal to another. 

The Norgaard treatment, which has been very effective, is 
as follows: Iodide of potassium is administered in doses of 
from lYz to ^Yz drams dissolved in water, once a day, and 
given as a drink. Larger animals get the larger dose, smaller 
cattle the lesser one. At about the end of a week the skin 
becomes scurfy, there is running at the nose and eyes and 
loss of appetite. This shows that the medicine has been ef- 
fective; and when this stage is reached the medicine must be 
discontinued for a few days. It is then again administered in 
the same doses until the skin becomes scurfy and the dis- 
charges at nose and eyes begin again. It must then be dis- 
continued for a few days. This treatment usually takes three 
to six weeks to be effective. 



FOUL FOOT 



In the earlier stages, before pus forms, apply undiluted 
creolin with a swab of cotton on a stick. Care must be exer- 
cised that none of the creolin comes in contact with the skin. 
Smearing the hoof with pitch and carbolic is a good thing, 
care having been taken to have the foot clean. If there is 
much pain use a bran poultice. 



POISONOUS VEGETATION 

The following are poisonous to cattle: Poison alder, wild 
cherry leaves and sumac leaves. An antidote for these 
poisons is i quart of raw linseed oil, to which add i pt. whis- 
key. Give immediately in one dose. Repeat in an hour, if 
necessary; or give one tablespoonful of ground mustard seed 
in I pt. of sweet milk. Repeat in an hour, if needed. Either 
can be used for mild paint poisoning. 



10 



INDEX 



Page 

Abortion and treatment 5-6 

Aborting cow, breeding of 6 

Afterbirth, removal of 13 

Afterbirth, retention of 13 

Alder poisoning 19 

Antidote for poison 19 

Appetite depraved 15 

Bathing udder 7 

Black Haw treatment for abortion 10 

Bloating or hoven 17 

Blood clots on vagina 18 

Bloody milk 7 

Bots or warbles 16 

Breeding aborting cow 6 

Bronchitis 18 

Bruised knee 17 

Buller 12 

Bulls, failure to breed 11 

Bulls, treatment for sterility 11 

Cabbage, cause of bloating 17 

Calf scours, causes of 10 

Calf scours, treatment for 10 

Calving cows, drenching 9-15 

Camphorated oil 7 

Carbolic acid treatment for abortion 10 

Carbolic-glycerine, preparation of 6 

Chapped teats 8 

Charcoal, feeding 15 

Cheap condition powders 15 

Closure of womb 11 

Clots on vagina 18 

Conception, failure of 11-12 

Condition powders 15 

Contagious abortion 5 

Contagious garget 7 

Cowpox, treatment for 6 

Creolin as disinfectant 5 

Cud, loss of 14 

Depraved appetite * 15 

Disinfectant 5 

Disinfecting bull 5 

20 



Page 

Disinfecting aborting cow 5 

Drenches 15 

Eating earth 15 

Eating lime 15 

Eating shavings 15 

Epsom salts, see drenches 15 

Failure of bull to breed 11 

Failure of cow to breed 11 

Failure to breed, how treated 11-12 

Feeding cows with garget 7 

Feed, light, desirable 7 

Feed, off 14 

Fevered udder 7 

Fever, milk 9 

Flies 16 

Fly, horn 16 

Fly spray 16 

Formalin, in calf scours 10 

Foul foot 19 

Garget 7 

Garget milk 8 

Garget, feeding with 7 

Glycerine-carbolic mixture 6 

Goose quill for bloating 17 

Heat, failure of 12 

Horn fly 16 

Hoven or bloating 17 

Indigestion or impaction 14 

Indigestion, treatment 14 

Inflamed udder, treatment for 7 

Insects and their treatment 16 

Iodine treatment for swollen knee 17 

Lard for caked udder 7 

Laudanum for aborting cow 5 

Lead poisoning 18 

Lean flesh for milk 7 

Leucorrhea, treatment of 13 

Lice, treatment for 16 

Light feeds desirable 7 

Lime, eating of 15 

Loss of cud 14 

Loss of quarter 8 

Lump jaw 19 

Massage for udder 8 

Milk, bloody 8 

21 



Page 

Milk fever 9 

Milk fever, air treatment 9 

Milk fever pump, handling of 9 

Milk fever, symptoms of 9 

Molasses in drench 15 

Navel cord, cutting 10 

Nogaard treatment for lump jaw 19 

Non-breeding 9-ia 

Off feed 14 

Off feed, drench for 15 

Os, closure of 12 

Paint poisoning 18-19 

Pasture, cause of bloating 17 

Poison, antidote 18-19 

Poisoning, paint 18-19 

Poisoning, lead 18-19 

Poisoning, vegetable 19 

Potassium, for garget 8 

Powders, condition 15 

Protrusion of vagina 13 

Quarter, lost 8 

Retention of afterbirth 13 

Rheumatism and its treatment 17 

Ringworn and its treatment 16 

Scabby teats 8 

Scours, calf 10 

Sore teats 6 

Sterility, causes of 11 

Sterility, treatment for 11 

Stoppage of teat 8 

Stringy milk 8 

Stripping, necessity for 8 

Sumac leaf poisoning 19 

Swollen jaw 19 

Swollen knee 17 

Swollen or inflamed udder 7 

Sympathetic abortion 5 

Tarred paper under floor 7 

Teats, chapped 8 

Teats, lumps in 8 

Teats, scabby 8 

Teats, warts on 8 

22 



Page 

Trocar, use of i7 

Turpentine for caked udder 7 

Udder, caked 7 

Udder, fever in 7 

Udder, inflamed 7 

Udder, massage of 7-8 

Udder, swollen or inflamed 7 

Vagina, bacteria in 12 

Vagina, clots on 18 

Vagina, protrusion of 13 

Vegetable poisoning 19 

Vegetation, poisonous 19 

Warbles, or bots 16 

Warts on teats 8 

Wash, glycerine-carbolic acid 8 

White discharge in leucorrhea 13 

Wild cherry leaf poison 19 

Womb, closure of 11-12 

Yeast treatment for non-breeders 12 



23 



You Waste All the Feed 

That the Cow Does Not Make a Return For 

And wasted feed means money 
lost, which might be saved 

My booklet, FEEDING COWS FOR PROFIT, will 

show you how to feed a common sense, economical, 
balanced, milk making ration. It is written in plain 
English and is for the dairy farmer, giving tables of 
the digestible nutrients in the hays, grains and succu- 
lents that are fed the dairy cow, and the cost of a 
pound of protein in each, so that every dairy farmer 
can make a well balanced, economical ration and use 
home grown crops to the greatest advantage. 



COWS FED FOR A. R. RECORDS 

I am feeding a large number of cows for A. R. 
records and have increased their records in all cases, 
and in some have doubled them. 

// you want to increase your A. R. 
Records f or to enter Cows in the A. R. 
List of any of the Breed Associations, 
write me for terms for this service. 

COMMERCIAL HERDS fed to materially increase 
yield or cut cost of feed while keeping up the milk flow^ 

This is no experiment. I have done 
these things in many herds and can 
do them in yours. Write for full 
information and proof. 



Booklet. FEEDING COWS FOR PROFIT, $1.00, post- 
paid, cash with order. 

Booklet, THE COW'S MEDICINE CHEST, 50c.. post- 
paid, cash with order. 

VALANCEY E. FULLER 

19 BURNET ST. MAPLEWOOD, N. J. 



